Mortgage Fraud Blog is the premier website for news and information on mortgage fraud and real estate fraud throughout the United States.
Rachel Dollar, the editor of Mortgage Fraud Blog, is an attorney and Certified Mortgage Banker who handles litigation for lending institutions and secondary market investors. She is an author and a nationally recognized speaker on the topic of mortgage fraud. Ms. Dollar is a shareholder with the law firm of Smith Dollar, PC, is licensed to practice law in California and maintains offices in Santa Rosa, California. Email Ms. Dollar
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Man Sentenced In $17.5 Million Mortgage Fraud Scheme
Jeffrey Tyler Wine, 28, Kansas City, MO, was sentenced in U.S. District Court to five years in federal prison without parole. The court also ordered Wine to pay $4,946,748 in restitution. The business owner was sentenced for a $17.5 million mortgage fraud scheme that involved 280 residential properties.
Last year, Wine pleaded guilty to mortgage fraud conspiracy and money laundering. The defendant admitted that from November 2001 to May 2005, he conspired with others to defraud mortgage lenders by inducing them to loan victim-investors $17,558,440 to purchase 280 residential properties. Wine was in the business of purchasing, rehabilitating, managing and selling residential properties in the metropolitan area through various business entities that he created and operated, including Sunrise Equities, Inc.; Sunrise Assets, LLC; Sunrise Investments Holdings, LLC; Brooklyn Properties, LLC; Arsenal Investments, LLC; Sunrise St. Louis, LLC; Woodland Properties and Larch Investments.
Wine acquired residential properties at reduced rates at foreclosure sales, tax sales and bankruptcy sales. After rehabbing the properties (which at times, Wine admitted, was done in a shoddy manner doing poor quality work), they were advertised for sale as investment properties with no money down. Victim-investors were told that Sunrise Equities would provide the down payment and closing costs for the sale, secure renters for the property and manage the properties for the first year after purchase, including all maintenance costs and tenant contracts. Victim-investors were also told that Sunrise Equities would ensure that mortgage payments were paid even if the properties were not rented, and that a positive cash flow from the properties was guaranteed.
Co-conspirators, who included mortgage brokers, prepared false and fraudulent loan applications and supporting documents to submit to mortgage lenders in the names of victim-investors. Sometimes Wine and co-conspirators provided money to the victim-investors to deposit into their bank accounts to mislead the lenders regarding the buyers’ assets. They also furnished money for the victim-investors to take to closing to pay the buyers’ closing costs.
While Wine and co-conspirators managed the rental properties, they submitted false monthly reports to victim-investors of rent received, expenses incurred, and income earned, and paid to the victim-investors the amount of income reflected. This induced victim-investors to purchase additional properties.
The defendant also pleaded guilty to money laundering, admitting that he engaged in a monetary transaction involving criminally-derived property, by drawing upon the funds obtained by fraud to purchase a 400-ounce gold bar for $177,000 on May 24, 2005.
A proactive method of stopping this problem that costs the US economy billions in losses. And to the common family a much more devastating insult. Their lives are altered to the worst. Mulitply this to all the families affected equates to the $$$ we all have to shoulder in dissipated losses. Stopping mortgage fraud our way is our gift of appreciation for all the goodness done to our great grandparents. thank you.
Subversion of Rural Innocence
$,$$$,$$$,$$$,$$$,$$$,$$$
Taking away a family’s home through fraud, waste and abuse sounds too common. How about taking away this family’s home even before they lived or died in it. How? historical mortgage and title records that we audited revealed contributory acts that our Economy absorbs as dissipated losses.
We are all paying for the price of mortgage fraud- taxes, fuel, unproportionate cost of living, etc.
This revelation of a relevant truth should not be ignored or else we shall have created an economic black hole to house generations of loved ones.
Victim: Edith Winn
Address: 10055 East Avenue R, Littlerock, Ca. 93543
Related: Gregg’s Artistic Homes, Benvani, Inc. Unified Mortgage, Dr. Neal Louis Horn, M.D. Livng Water Lending, dba Skyline Funding,R G lending, Pacific Shores Mortgage, to name a few.
Terms: Every Fair Lending Violation you can think of, Redlining, Abuse of Authority, continuing financial crimes enterprise.
Failed Mortgage Firm Trustee Allowed $50,000 in Fees Union Leader
U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge J. Michael Deasy will approve $50,000 in legal fees for the trustee of failed mortgage brokerage businesses Financial Resources Mortgage Inc. and CL&M Inc.
Bend Oregon Event to Help Homeowners Prevent Foreclosures Oregon.Gov
As part of an ongoing effort to help homeowners avoid foreclosure, state agencies are organizing a foreclosure-prevention event in Bend on Saturday, March 27, 2010.
Shelbyville Man Gets 2-Year Sentence For Loan Fraud Chattanoogan.Com
Prosecutor Gary Humble said the lost was approximately $2.3 million in the mortgage fraud involving hundreds of homes in the Shelbyville area.
Lend America, VP Ashley Banned from FHA Housing Wire
Michael Ashley, the embattled former vice president of Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-backed mortgage originator Lend America, and the company he worked for, were permanently banned from doing business in the industry last week.
Countrywide Tries to Pin Blame on Insurer Court House News
Countrywide Home Loans demands $111 million from Triad Guaranty Insurance, claiming Triad is trying to blame mortgage lenders for the insurer's role in the housing bubble and collapse.
Investors Say They Were Swindled in Property Scheme Fox 13 Now
Utah Division of Consumer Protection is joining forces with a few investors who claim they have been cheated by an agency called "Utah Mini Ranches.
Greenfield Man Accused of Housing Scam The Republic
A former real estate agent conned at least eight people by renting them properties actually owned by a federal agency and then running off with their deposits, prosecutors said.
Appraisal Institute Opposes Obama Administration's Plan for Homeowner 'Short Sales' PR News Wire
Citing concerns about increased mortgage fraud, four organizations representing more than 35,000 real estate appraisers today voiced their opposition to changes to an Obama administration program that will encourage "short sales" of homes.
Ownership Rights to Get Another Look TBO.Com
State lawmakers may beef up protections of property owners' rights by rewriting a law this spring that is at the center of a case of alleged fraud in Pasco County.
Thursday, February 18, 2010 F. Jeffrey Miller Trial Continued Testimony
As reported by Anne Mitchell, who viewed the trial:
Angela Parenza worked for Jeff Miller as the office manager for 7 or 8 years beginning in 1998. Parenza was indicted along with Miller and pled guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud and money laundering. Parenza testified that Miller or his contractors allegedly preferred to build all the...
Wednesday, February 10, 2010 F. Jeffrey Miller Trial Coverage Continued - Witness Testimony
Steve Middleton Testimony - Coverage Provided by Anne Mitchell
The Government continued in its cross examination of Steve Middleton. He was shown several HUD-1 statements involving sales of homes located in Overland Park, KS, and Olathe, KS. The HUD statements each allegedly showed line items of payments to (James) Moser & Associates, LLC's...
Monday, February 01, 2010 F. Jeffrey Miller Trial Coverage - Continued Witness Examination
According to Anne Mitchell, who is present in court for the trial:
Next Witness: Kelly Sanford
Kelly Sanford of the Federal Reserve was a short witness for the Government. Sanford manages electronic payments between banks and member financial institutions. He was shown copies of wire transfers and asked whether they coincided with the counts in...
Wednesday, January 27, 2010 F. Jeffrey Miller Trial - Prosecution Witnesses Continued
According to Anne Mitchell, who is viewing the trial:
January 13, 2010
Witness: Rick Hayes
Rick Hayes testified that on the day that he closed on his Miller Enterprise home, he received a phone call from the Kansas Banking Commission informing him that his loan was fraudulent. After the Hayes responded to a classified ad, they met with John...
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The information and notices contained on Mortgage Fraud Blog are intended to summarize recent developments in mortgage fraud cases and mortgage banking matters nationwide. The posts on this site are presented as general research and information and are expressly not intended, and should not be regarded, as legal advice. Much of the information on this site concerns allegations made in civil lawsuits and in criminal indictments. All persons are presumed innocent until convicted of a crime. Readers who have particular questions about mortgage banking, mortgage fraud matters or who believe they require legal counsel should seek the advice of an attorney. The creators, editors and sponsors of Mortgage Fraud Blog do not intend to create a confidential relationship or an attorney-client relationship by communication via or arising from this site.
Rachel Dollar, the editor of Mortgage Fraud Blog, is an attorney and Certified Mortgage Banker who handles litigation for lending institutions and secondary market investors. She is an author and a nationally recognized speaker on the topic of mortgage fraud. Ms. Dollar is a shareholder with the law firm of 
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